ECONOMISTS: WAR'S END WON'T BOOST SUPERMARKET INDUSTRY

The end of the war in Iraq -- seeming imminent last week as U.S. troops moved into Baghdad -- may boost consumer confidence, but it won't necessarily translate into sales gains for the slumping supermarket industry, economists and other industry observers told SN last week.Frank Badillo, senior economist, Retail Forward, Columbus, Ohio, said he expected retailers -- including supermarkets -- to get

The end of the war in Iraq -- seeming imminent last week as U.S. troops moved into Baghdad -- may boost consumer confidence, but it won't necessarily translate into sales gains for the slumping supermarket industry, economists and other industry observers told SN last week.

Frank Badillo, senior economist, Retail Forward, Columbus, Ohio, said he expected retailers -- including supermarkets -- to get "some bounce" in sales, but the economic malaise that has constrained consumer spendin